Start Button vs. Start System: The $50 Part Everyone Buys by Mistake
By Irina Gedarevich · Digital Guard Dawg Technical Team
7/24/2026
This is the most common buying mistake in the entire keyless ignition category, and it costs people a return shipment and a week of their build.
Someone searches "push start button," finds a beautiful billet button with a blue halo LED for $50, buys it, and waits for delivery — expecting a push button start kit.
What arrives is a switch. A very nice switch. It does not start anything by itself, and it never was going to.
Here's the distinction, clearly, so you order right the first time.
The two things, plainly
A push start button is the physical switch you press. Billet aluminum, 22mm or 25mm, illuminated halo LED ring, 36-inch plug-in harness. It is an input device. It sends a signal. It has no idea whose finger pressed it and no ability to start an engine.
A push button start system is the switch plus a control module — the electronics that authenticate your RFID fob, switch the actual high-current ignition circuits, and emulate everything your key switch used to do.
The module is the product. The button is the part you see.
Which do you need?
|
Your situation |
What to buy |
|
Converting from a key ignition, no keyless system yet |
Full system — module + button |
|
You own a DGD system and want a different button style |
Button only |
|
Your existing button is damaged |
Button only |
|
You have an aftermarket alarm and want push start |
|
|
You saw a $50 button and thought it was the whole kit |
Full system — this article is for you |
The rule: if your vehicle currently starts with a key, you need a system. Buttons are only ever an accessory to a module you already own.
Why the button can't do the job alone
Three reasons, and each one is disqualifying on its own.
1. Current. Your ignition circuit isn't a signal wire. It carries the load of your ignition, fuel pump, ECU, and — during crank — a starter solenoid. A billet button is a low-current switch; running ignition current through one would cook it.
That's what the module is for. Digital Guard Dawg publishes the ratings: PBS-I and PBS-II carry onboard 60A high-current relays on a 4oz copper chassis with 12-gauge bus-insulated wiring. The iKey Premier publishes two 40A ignition outputs and 20A door lock relays.
Those relays are inside the module — DGD's pages specifically note this eliminates "unsightly and failure prone" external relay wiring. Every external relay is another crimp under a dash, heat-cycling for a decade.
2. Authentication. A bare button starts the car for whoever presses it. The module holds the RFID authentication — Texas Instruments RFID with DFDE (Dual Frequency ~ Dual Encryption) and over 6 billion unique codes — and keeps the engine immobilized until an authorized fob is present. Without the module you don't have a keyless ignition; you have an unlocked one.
3. Ignition logic. A key switch had positions: ACC, ACC+IGN, START. A button has one state — pressed. The module recreates the sequence:
8. Tap once → accessory mode
9. Tap twice → ignition + accessory circuits
10. Press the brake and tap → engine starts
11. Press the brake and tap → powers down
It also handles the detail that separates engineered systems from kits: during starter crank, one accessory circuit drops out to reduce current draw while the second stays live for ECUs and computers that must not lose power mid-start.
Good news: with DGD, every system already includes a button
You are not buying these separately.
Every PBS and iKey system ships with a premium billet start button — brushed stainless steel or black anodized, 22mm or 25mm, with an illuminated halo LED ring in blue, green, red or white, pre-wired with a 36" plug-in harness.
So the full system price is genuinely the full price:
|
System |
Price |
Fitment |
|
$443 |
Any vehicle with an aftermarket alarm or remote start |
|
|
$469 |
12V marine, gas or diesel, non-CANbus |
|
|
$589 |
Pre-1998, ignition only |
|
|
$665 |
Pre-1998 with power accessories |
|
|
$783 |
Almost any vehicle except 2012+ Mercedes-Benz |
|
|
$299 |
12V ATV / UTV |
|
|
$299 |
Golf carts, 12–48V |
|
|
$269 |
Motorcycles |
Prices as of July 2026.
When buying a button alone is exactly right
Once you own a system, the button becomes the styling decision — and Digital Guard Dawg offers over 50 designs, more than anyone else in the category.
Billet — $50. Brushed stainless or black anodized, 22mm or 25mm, four LED colors. 16+ combinations.
Slim Line SL-OEM — $77. Low-profile, blue/green/red.
OEM-style, matched to specific vehicles:
|
Button |
Price |
|
Ford Raptor · Honda Civic |
$159 |
|
Toyota · Lexus LX · Nissan SS-style |
$199 |
|
Cadillac Escalade |
$212 |
|
Corvette C7 (silver or black face) |
$229 |
|
Nissan amber LED · Lexus LX OEM multi · Honda HR-V |
$264–265 |
|
Honda S2000 |
$344 |
|
Nissan black face |
$353 |
|
Aston Martin black |
$705 |
Also useful: a start button extension harness for $25 when the button lands further from the module than 36 inches.
Note the hole size: 22mm or 25mm refers to the hole; the button face is 3mm larger. Measure before you drill.
Browse all 50+ start buttons →
The other thing people buy by mistake: an immobilizer isn't a button either
The mirror-image error. Some buyers want theft protection and end up shopping buttons.
If you want to keep your key and just add RFID authentication, you don't want a button or a push start system — you want a standalone immobilizer:
· DGD-M1 — $149 — hands-free RFID immobilizer, any 12V vehicle, two wires plus power and ground. Silent, so no battery drain.
· AT-1 — $229 — "one size fits all," 3-wire install, any 12V vehicle, completely hidden once installed.
Both arm and disarm automatically as you walk away and return. No button involved at all.
Order right the first time
12. Does your vehicle start with a key today? → You need a system.
13. Do you already have an aftermarket alarm or remote start? → PBS-X, $443 — keep the alarm, add RFID push start for $340 less than the flagship.
14. Pre-1998 with power locks, windows or shaved doors? → PBS-II, $665.
15. Want doors that unlock as you walk up, plus an alarm? → iKey Premier, $783.
16. Already own a DGD system and just want a different look? → Buttons only.
Still unsure? Call 1-877-246-5395, M–F 7am–5pm Pacific — and note that every order is backed by a 100% Customer Satisfaction Guarantee: unconditional money back with an RMA within 7 days of purchase. Two minutes on the phone beats a return shipment.
Sources
· Digital Guard Dawg — PBS-I (60A onboard relays, 4oz copper chassis, 12GA wiring, ignition sequence, accessory dropout during crank, included billet button and 36" harness)
· Digital Guard Dawg — PBS-X (button spec: 22/25mm, face 3mm larger, 16+ billet combinations, 50+ designs)
· Digital Guard Dawg — iKey Premier (40A/20A ratings, DFDE, TI RFID)
· Digital Guard Dawg — Start buttons
· Digital Guard Dawg — 100% Customer Satisfaction Guarantee
Verified 28 July 2026.
